Dialogic Spaces: Adult Education Projects and Social Engagement

This paper develops the notions of dialogue and dialogic space in relation to adult education projects with emancipatory agendas. It explores the philosophical genealogy of the notion of dialogue in order to establish a basis for the concept of dialogic space, surveying the works of seminal figures such as Plato, Buber, Bakhtin, Habermas and Freire. The literature survey identifies key themes and linkeages among theorists of dialogue. The paper goes on to discuss dialogue in relation to adult education projects and develops the concept of dialogic space. It draws on a historical case study of a South African adult education project, the Tuition Project, to illustrate the concept. It concludes by examining the conditions which make dialogue possible in adult education and discusses the broader application of the notion of dialogic space in the field.